Date: Mon, 21 Nov 1994 11:35:10 -0500
From: Donald Larmouth
Subject: "All-purpose tag ain' so?
There is a tag-question in east central Wisconsin whose distribution appears to
be wider than I first thought. The tag is ain' so? [enso] or [Enso], as in the
following:
It was a nice party, ain' so?
We're having a really cold winter, ain' so?
This isn't quite an all-purpose tag; there appear to be some limits to its
appearance, as in the following:
*You didn't REALLY do that, ain' so?
*Of course I will--I promised, ain' so?
*That's not the right way to do it, ain' so? (reprimand)
I've heard this form many times in Green Bay and in the Door Peninsula, where
there are many Belgian-Americans (Flemings and Walloons), but a student of mine
from Reedsville (well south of Green Bay) has recorded it there among Czech
(Bohemian) people.
Have you (1) heard this tag elsewhere in Wisconsin or in other states, and if
so (2) are there limits on its grammatical distribution?
Thanks.